The holiday season is upon us! If you’re looking for the perfect holiday herbal gift for the aspiring herbalist on your list, look no further than this DIY herbal starter kit! This herbal starter kit is easy to put together, completely customizable to your budget, and makes an excellent, heartfelt gift.
Not only is it something that will be fun for you to make and give, but it will help get the beginner herbalist off to a great start on their herbal journey. And that makes this holiday herbal gift something they’ll never forget!
It’s also important to know that this herbal starter kit isn’t limited to a holiday gift only. It also works for birthday, graduation, and thinking of you gifts as well!
How To Create an Herbal Starter Kit for Aspiring Herbalists
When I was new to herbs, I was so eager to learn and to make and use every herbal recipe I came across. And at that season of life, I most certainly could have done with an herbal starter kit to help me get off on the right foot.
I can’t tell you how much time and money I wasted trying to gather the things I needed.
I spent so much energy browsing through magazines, books, and blogs, looking for supplies and tools that other herbalists were using or recommending. Hundreds of dollars were spent buying an herb here or there because a recipe called for it only to use once instead of focusing on getting to know some basic herbs that have many different uses or substituting the herb for something I already had on hand.
In the section below, you’ll find a list of basic herbs to include in your herbal supply kit as well as other necessary supplies, books, labels, containers, and more.
If you want to shop for the following items in your local herbal stores, I’d highly recommend supporting local businesses. However, if you’re like me and live in a very rural location, shopping online may be more practical. If that’s you, I’m also including links to where you can find everything online to make it easy for you.
So let’s get started putting together our herbal supply kit! Are you ready?
Herbs for your Herbal Supply Kit
One cannot create an herbal starter kit without herbs. However, there are SO MANY herbs out there, which ones do you include? I would recommend starting with 12 basic herbs and adding on from there depending on your budget.
Basic Herbs
- Cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum) bark
- Rose (Rosa spp.) petal
- Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) aerial parts
- Nettle (Urtica dioica) aerial parts
- Calendula (Calendula officinalis) flower
- Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) flower
- Catnip (Nepeta cataria) aerial parts
- Elder (Sambucus nigra) berry
- Marshmallow (Althaea officinalis) root
- Clove (Syzygium aromaticum) bud
- Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) seed
- Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) aerial parts
Additional Herbs
- Rose (Rosa spp.) hips
- Cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum) pods
- Ashwagandha (Withania sominifera) root
- Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) root
- Orange (Citrus x sinensis) peel
- Milky oat (Avena sativa) tops
- Tulsi (Ocimum tenuiflorum) aerial parts
- Rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus) leaf
- Ginger (Zingiber officinale) root
Herbs come in various-sized packages in stores and online. If you don’t want to put too much thought into how much of each herb to purchase, you can simply purchase 1-ounce or 4-ounce bags of all the herbs you choose to include in your herbal starter kit. However, if you want to be really helpful and make sure the gift recipient has enough of what they need, it’s always a good idea to purchase a smaller amount (around 1-ounce) of harder herbs, such as barks and roots, and larger amounts (around 4-ounces) of lighter herbs, such as flowers and leaves.
Mountain Rose Herbs is my top recommendation for online herbs that come in a variety of sizes. If you’re planning to order in time for the holidays, place your order soon so your herbs are delivered in enough time to pack in your herbal starter kit.
Beginner Herbal Books
If I were to choose two herbal books that I’d gift to any beginner herbalist, it would have to be herbalist James Green’s The Herbal Medicine-Maker’s Handbook and Rosemary Gladstar’s Herbal Recipes for Vibrant Health.
These books will teach newbie herbalists how to make high-quality herbal preparations of all sorts, time-tested herbal remedies that are effective for all seasons of life, and give them a basic educational overview of how specific herbs work and are used (many of which you’ve included in your herbal starter kit).
Herbal Preparation Supplies
While a holiday herbal gift box filled with a wide assortment of herbs would make a great gift, creating an herbal starter kit isn’t complete without the supplies needed to make many of the herbal preparations in the books above. Below you’ll find a basic list of common supplies needed to create herbal preparations like salves, syrups, tinctures, and infused oils.
- Beeswax or vegan wax options, such as candelilla, sustainably-harvested caranuba, or non-GMO soy wax.
- Carrier oils, such as olive (Olea europaea) or sweet almond (Prunus amygdalus) oil
- Essential oils, such as lavender (Lavandula angustifolia), tea tree (Melaleuca alternifolia), peppermint (Mentha x piperita), sweet orange (Citrus x sinensis), or eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus)
- Raw honey
- Alcohol, such as vodka or brandy
Containers & Labels
Once your gift recipient has herbs and preparation supplies on hand, they’re going to need something to put their herbal recipes in once they’re made. I’m talking about bottles, jars, and tins as well as some labels to identify what’s in each container. Below is a list of some great container options that you could include in your herbal supply kit.
- Muslin bags
- 1-ounce, 2-ounce, and 4-ounce salve tins
- 2-ounce and 4-ounce glass dropper tincture bottles
- 4-ounce glass spray bottles
- 2-ounce glass jars
- Various sizes of herbal labels
Going The Extra Mile
Now, if you’re looking to take your herbal supply kit to the next level, you could go the extra mile and include a gift certificate or two in the kit to help the aspiring herbalist on your list add to the amazing gift you’ve already given them.
My top choices for gift certificates to include in this holiday herbal gift is one (or both) of the following:
- Mountain Rose Herbs gift certificate for more additional herbs or other supplies, or
- Herbal Academy gift certificate for an herbal course of their choosing for continued education.
Last But Not Least
Now that your holiday herbal gift is complete, there’s one last thing to include in the herbal supply kit before you package it up and get it ready for gifting — a handwritten card. Including a handwritten card will not only express to your gift recipient just how much they mean to you and how you want to support them on this new path, but it’s the perfect last piece of the puzzle to tie this herbal supply gift all together.
Gifts From the Heart
Gifts don’t have to be large and lavish to touch someone’s heart. If you have the means to put a complete herbal supply kit together for someone, that’s awesome. But if a complete kit isn’t doable this year, that’s fine too. You can still give a gift that is meaningful to that special someone on your list. Hopefully this article has given you plenty of holiday herbal gift ideas you can share with someone special this season or any season to come.
Happy holidays, friends!
Love and light,
Meagan